I’m in shock - Australian newspaper

[timeisnotaline]

It’s the Saturday issue to be fair but this is actually on the front page, and extends to a full page spread inside. It’s paywalled unfortunately and I don’t have a log in.
www.theage.com.au/national/inclusive-language-risks-dehumanising-women-top-researchers-argue-20220126-p59red.html

Every so often when we get too rowdy and they realise they may have gone a bit too far, they throw us a bone.

Well no shit. Seems being a woman who feels dehumanised by "inclusive" isn't sufficient qualification to be taken seriously on the matter it requires "top researchers" to make the point for us.

I'm guessing Oz is not a very gender critical place then?

No @Taswama it’s definitely not although practically speaking it’s not as bad as the uk in some ways but policy and govt doc wise it is.

If you click on link and, as soon as it downloads switch to aeroplane mode, you can read article. Tip I learned here on FWR.

Now that these are the words of “10 prominent women’s health researchers” are they more likely to be accepted and acted on?
Perhaps it will depend if not all these “women’s health researchers” are biologically female.

Sexed term: Birthing women
Replacement non-sexed terms: …… labourers
A person giving birth is not the first thing I think of when I hear someone described as a “labourer.”

@Taswama

I'm guessing Oz is not a very gender critical place then?

It’s actually quite odd.

First, there is the stereotype of blokey, larrikin behaviour balanced with a belief that everyone (including women) should get a ‘fair go’.

Then, there are the chattering classes who interpret a ‘fair go’ to be extremely woke and want to give the most marginalized (whomever they believe them to be) more favorable conditions (such as funding, access etc) than less marginalized groups.

And then there is what is probably the majority of people - they talk about it a lot less, haven’t realised the future implications, but are mildly resentful that not everyone has a ‘fair go’ at life.

What I have found really interesting is that the ‘noise’ is often made about issues that I haven’t noticed in my own life. And I do believe my experience in Australia is fairly typical and nothing out of the ordinary,

For example, racism is much discussed in the media. Whilst I am certain it exists, I have never seen direct racism against Aboriginal people. (To be clear, I’m sure it exists but I haven’t personally seen it.) However, I have seen a huge amount of direct racism against Australians of Chinese descent or Chinese immigrants. That is rarely, if ever, mentioned in the media.

My point here is that what I see in the media is not a reflection of what I experience in Australia. And I am sure that is true of a lot (most?) people.

The media does, however, have a reciprocal relationship with politics. Politics focuses on what is covered in the media and the media covers what happens in politics.

As a result, policy, like the media, is much more progressive than the population.

I do wonder if the population will follow policy and become progressive or wake up and decide that woke policies are not progressive and vote/legislate accordingly.

• I typed ‘wake up’ and only afterwards realised the irony of using that with regards to to ‘wokeness’.

If anyone has a library card that gives access to Newsbank, you may find it there.

From The Age link:

a Federal Health Department guide for pregnant and breastfeeding women regarding COVID-19 vaccination and its impact on pregnant women was edited last year to remove the term “women”, introducing errors into the scientific accuracy of the material in the process.

The source information compared disease severity of COVID in pregnant women with non-pregnant women, but when the department removed the word “women” it compared “pregnant people” with “non-pregnant people”, changing the meaning to incorrectly include men.

Well what a surprise! if you fuck about with language and change the meaning of words you end up confusing everyone - possibly fatally.

The department released three versions of the document, the last of which reinstated the word “women”

It took three goes to do the bleeding obvious thing. Well done for getting there in the end, I suppose.

We are downgraded to the basic/standard model of our own sex. ‘The ‘standard cis-gender woman’ will still be able to get the messages’

It seems like countries like Australia and Canada may be starting to see the very first glimmers of push back.

I don't think that was her point at all, which was about what's talked about - or not talked about as they case may be.

@SantaClawsServiette

I don't think that was her point at all, which was about what's talked about - or not talked about as they case may be.

It is though. Deaths in custody, the cashless indue card, the severe health consequences of covid in aboriginal communities, them not being delivered food, racism at Collingwood football club for indigenous players, we see evidence of the racism and disadvantages which are direct consequences of racism reported on all the time.

And just to defend australia a bit, the article might have elements of ‘balance’ but it’s quite clear really, and when in the uk have you seen this on the front page of the print edition of a major newspaper? It’s Victoria’s main newspaper. It is a standalone point as well, not tacked onto the major theme of violence against and respect for women that will be an election topic. (Yes it’s about respect for women but the election theme has a different angle)

Oh man, we have an entire day dedicated to racism against Aboriginal people.

Bernard Lane of The Australian newspaper has been investigating children’s gender clinics in Australia for years. He has pieces in The Australian at least every month. His articles are amazing- well-researched and dogged in his pursuit of the medical evidence that the gender clinics rely on. The Michelle Teflers of the world loathe him. He is well worth following on Twitter. The Australian also regularly has opinion pieces critical of gender ideology from writers from both the left and right.

The mainstream progressive press, including the ABC, the SMH, The Age and The Guardian are up to their necks in gender ideology. I am amazed the SMH has published this. A crack of sunlight at last?

300 fairly sensible comments

The Aus Guardian journalists are predictably outraged that anyone would prefer to use female-centred language.

I believe there are journalists who are GC at the ABC and the former Fairfax newspapers but they don't want to stick their heads up. Hopefully, articles like this will provide a bit of encouragement, especially when the comments are overwhelmingly supportive.

FlickFlak, I don’t live under a rock. Please reread my post.

I think it was quite clear that I don’t doubt that there is racism in Australia, both direct and indirect, directed towards both the Aboriginal and Chinese communities. I have personally witnessed more aggression towards the Chinese community than the Aboriginal community.

Those of Chinese descent are a larger and more visible population. Perhaps that is why I notice it? And yet it isn’t reported as widely in the media. Perhaps that is politically motivated?

I think SantaClaws understood the point I was trying to make. Thank you.

Another article on the original issue:

www.news.com.au/lifestyle/parenting/new-research-reveals-huge-risk-of-introducing-genderneutral-terms-for-parents/news-story/15f809e7e29bf32f07cf4f5a2b7ac6d3

Remember though that the Age is Melbourne based. And the Victorian government has brought in self ID and conversion therapy bills (and QLD and ACT have conversion therapy laws as well).

That this article has been published in The Age and given prominence is interesting in itself.

I left Oz 5 years ago before this was even a glimmer. Before anyone realised what Julia started in the anti-discrimination law in 2013.

So, is there any hint that NSW will pass a conversion bill too?

Very few of my friends have woken up to the issues. If they knew, I would fully expect them to be GC. My family too. All of them woke up something is happening in sport thanks to Hubbard. But they haven’t twigged Australia also allows this in sports too. Because they are not seeing in ^their* sports.

To be fair, this is the case here in the UK too. Most of the people I spend time with here have no knowledge about it. Which is why I laugh every time an activist poster tries to push the ‘GC support is declining’ line here and on twitter.

The momentum is building though. I feel sick at the women and girls being harmed in the meantime.

It is building though.

I am rather surprised to see someone post that they have not witnessed racism against Aboriginal people though.

I guess maybe I have family, and I grew up in, in an area rife with visible social issues of indigenous Australians. Issues exacerbated by not only inherent racism, past and present, but also racism from people they encounter everyday.